Common sense lesson: Respect the police

Sadly, The Daily Herald missed the mark with its headline and editorial regarding the tragic death of Sandra Bland.

Growing up, all my friends and I were taught to treat the police with respect. We were told that if you got stopped by the police, the "Golden Rule" was to do as you were told, act with respect, and say "yes sir or no sir" to the police officer.

We all knew that if we acted with disrespect, we could count on being arrested. That was true no matter what color you were.

Anybody who watched or listened to the arrest of Sandra Bland recorded for the record saw the police officer treating Ms. Bland with respect in the beginning. Unfortunately Ms. Bland was very disrespectful to the police officer from the beginning and argued and disobeyed the police officer, which escalated until she resisted arrest and was arrested.

Nobody should be surprised that she was arrested if they saw what actually happened.

This tragedy could have been avoided if Ms. Bland had simply followed the "Golden Rule" for all people no matter what color they are, which is if you get stopped by the police, act with respect and do as you are told.

That is the common sense lesson The Daily Herald and all the media should be sharing with the public, especially our young people.

Randy Rossi

Grayslake